We´ve had a lovely day in snoozy Colonia....firstly a fantastic night´s sleep in a comfy bed- such a treat after our previous nights in the very noisy place in Buenos Aires... We also have our own bathroom for the price we have been paying elsewhere to walk down the corridoor so it feels like absolute luxury! Had a nice, powerful hot shower this morning- the first time all of those elements have come together!

We then spent the day wandering round the old town. We climbed to the very top of the still working lighthouse which was a treat as you could see so far it felt like you could see the curvature of the earth! The man in the top however was very grumpy and didn´t answer my enthuisiastic Hola...It was absolutely freezing though and it can´t be the most exciting job in the world turning a lamp on and off and dealing with annoying tourists!

We then decided to hire a buggy so we could explore a bit more and set off down the coast to see the beach (beautiful) and a bit more of rural Uraguan life. We drove past little houses, a completely derelict old football stadium and the horse racing track with everyone waving merrily at us...It was all going splendidly until Charles drove and took it straight through a deep puddle at high speed- resulting in a soaking! It was a really nice thing to do despite the fact that my hands felt like they were going to drop off at the end. Uruguay is beautiful and being here, especially standing on the beach in coats, hats and scarves makes you realise how lovely it must be to visit South America when it´s not winter here....still you can´t have everything!

So it´s back over the water to Buenos Aires again tomorrow- we were so glad we came over here though- lots of people just come for the day but we were pleased that we stayed for a couple of days and got a taste for it. Looking in the windows last night we realised that you could pay for trainers here in installments....it made me wonder what happens if you don´t meet the last payment and whether they have a load of worn trainers that have been repossesed out the back.... In all seriousness it makes you a bit sad about materialism when it has reached the stage that people will buy Converse trainers on hire purchase....

Tonight we´re going back to our favourite place here for dinner- I´m already excited about steak with creamy leeks and potato cake- a local speciality that´s right up my street... Charles is going to try their other special- steak with lime cream...an interesting concept but it must work in some way to have lasted on the menu!